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EstlinClichy whilst I can see where you are coming from with your comments on Chinese weights, I very much doubt if the artisans who created the Baccarat and Clichy weights in the 19th century regarded themselves as artists at the time, merely folks doing a poorly paid job of work. They certainly would never have envisaged their work being held in the esteem that it is in current times and would probably have laughed at the value placed on it. Who is to say that in the years to come the weights you seem to value so highly will not be regarded in a totally different light and the Chinese weights be what the fashions of the time seek out and pay a premium for.I find your comment that people who truly care about paperweights as an art form one of the most egotistical I've heard in many a long time since you obviously bracket yourself in this elitist upper class of the collecting world.I have no wish to perpetuate an on-going slanging match, so this will be my final words in this topic, but far from being thin skinned I have the hide of a rhino and really think you need to chill out and me more tolerant of others.Paul

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To Estlinclichy: thanks for the wonderful photographs of Venice and especially those photos of the two men who made two of the paperweights you bought. Their pride in their work is so obvious. In fact, looking at their smiling faces gave me goosebumps. One day I hope to visit Venice and Murano and plan on bringing a goodly sum to buy some quality paperweights, similar to what you were lucky to find.

I have 112 paperweights in my collection, which includes work from Canada, the U.S., England, Scotland, France, Italy, Germany, and Poland. I have no Chinese paperweights and won't. I see Chinese weights at every turn in shops and flea markets and they are terribly inferior to everything else. The Italians are right to reject them. In Robert G. Hall's fine book "World Paperweights: Millefiori & Lampwork," he has photos of shocking copies made by unscrupulous Chinese glass workers of paperweights including those made by Yaffa Sikorsky-Todd and Jeffrey M. Todd, Baccarat, and others. I find this form of copyright violation to be reprehensible.

True paperweight collectors should never endorse this kind of violation and should reject Chinese work until it becomes unique and original. Estlinclichy's comment about saving one's money to purchase legitimate paperweights from glassmakers who work with honor is absolutely correct.

The great thing about discovering two of my paperweights is realizing that the men who made them are alive and well and filled with great joy at their creations.

Luciano Nichetto helps out at his family's antique shop, which, by the way, is at a corner location on Fondamenta Daniele Manin at Bressagio, which is the street that leads to the Faro vaporetto (boat/bus) stop. The antique shop is exactly on the left corner as you look up Bressagio towards the Faro stop. There are plenty of weights in the shop if you get to Venice and Murano, and the prices are very fair - in the 75 to 125 euro range. The other shop, where I purchased the Bucella weight, is a bit further down Fondamenta Daniele Manin. Remember that when visiting Venice, if a street has the word Fondamenta in it, that means it borders a canal. Not all streets that border a canal have Fondamenta in their name, but if they do, they are next to a canal.

The 3Fiori paperweight - the heavy millefiori weight with silhouette canes - came from a shop across the same canal, but that side is called Fondamenta Vetrai.